Game Thread PLAYOFFS: ROUND 1, GAME 3: NUGGETS @ BLAZERS - MAY 27, 2021 - THURSDAY, 7:30, NBATV & NBCSNW

[Darkwebs]

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_____________________________
---------PROBABLE STARTERS---------

2020-21 REGULAR SEASON RECORD
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
42 - 30
(22-14 Road)
DENVER NUGGETS
47 - 25
(25-11 Home)

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------- JERSEYS -------

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WHEN: 7:30 PM (PDT), THURSDAY, 5/27/2021

WHERE: Moda Center, Portland, OR

TV BROADCAST:

AND

RADIO BROADCAST:

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--------------BENCH--------------

---- DENVER NUGGETS ----

MORRIS , HOWARD , DOZIER

BARTON , HARRISON , CANCAR

GREEN , MILLSAP , NNAJI

McGEE , BOL

-- PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS --

SIMONS , BLEVINS , ELLEBY

LITTLE , HOLLIS-JEFFERSON , JONES Jr.

ANTHONY , LEAF

GILES III , KANTER



INJURIES
TRAIL BLAZERS
Zach Collins (left ankle stress fracture): OUT
NUGGETS
Will Barton (right hamstring strain): QUESTIONABLE
P.J. Dozier (strained right adductor): QUESTIONABLE
Jamal Murray (torn left ACL): OUT




HEAD COACHES

- VS –

MICHAEL MALONE--- TERRY STOTTS



OFFICIAL NUGGETS' GAME NOTES
OFFICIAL BLAZERS' GAME NOTES ​

SEASON SERIES NOTES
• Denver won the season series against Portland in 2018-19, 3-1. All four games were decided by single digits.
• In four games against the Nuggets, Damian Lillard averaged 21.3 points (37.1% FG, 28.6% 3-PT, 95.8% FT), 3.8 rebounds and 7.0 assists. Lillard shot 23-of-24 from the free-throw-line against Denver this season.
• CJ McCollum averaged 20.0 points (45.3% FG, 26.3% 3-PT, 100% FT), 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists in three games against the Nuggets this season.
• In four games against the Nuggets, Al-Farouq Aminu averaged 16.0 points (50.0% FG, 31.6% 3-PT, 94.7% FT), 11.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.00 steal. His 16.0 points per game was his highest scoring average against a Western Conference opponent this season.
• Nikola Jokic averaged 25.7 points (62.0% FG, 38.5% 3-PT, 76.9% FT), 9.7 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 1.00 steal in three games against the Trail Blazers this season.

PLAYOFF SERIES NOTES
• Portland and Denver have faced each other twice previously in the postseason, with each team winning one series.
• The Trail Blazers and Nuggets are 5-5 against each other in the playoffs, all-time.
• The Trail Blazers defeated the Nuggets 4-2 in the 1977 NBA Western Conference Semifinals despite Denver holding home court advantage. Portland won the NBA Championship that year.
• The Nuggets took a five-game first round series vs. the Trail Blazers in 1986, 3-1.
• Former Trail Blazers Will Barton and Mason Plumlee have playoff experience with the Trail Blazers. Barton averaged 6.4 points, 1.7 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 11.6 minutes in six games during the 2014 postseason vs. Houston and San Antonio. Plumlee posted averages of 7.0 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.00 block and 27.8 minutes in 11 starts vs. the LA Clippers and Golden State in 2016.
• The series is only Portland’s second playoff matchup against a divisional opponent since facing the Lakers in 2002 as members of the Pacific Division. Entering this postseason vs. divisional rivals Oklahoma City and Denver, the Trail Blazers had never faced a Northwest Division opponent since the division was formed in 2004-05.

CONNECTIONS
• Portland center Jusuf Nurkic averaged 7.5 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 139 games (59 starts) in two-plus seasons with the Nuggets. Nurkic was acquired by the Trail Blazers in exchange for Mason Plumlee and a 2017 first round pick on Feb.13, 2017. Plumlee averaged 9.9 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 136 games (all starts) across two seasons in Portland.
• Denver guard Will Barton was selected by the Trail Blazers with the 40th pick of the 2012 NBA Draft. He averaged 3.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 144 games (five starts) in two-plus seasons with Portland.
• Trail Blazers forward/center Skal Labissiere and Denver guard Jamal Murray were teammates at the University of Kentucky for the 2015-16 season.

PREVIOUS MEETINGS IN THE SERIES ​

GAME #1: WIN 123-109


GAME #2: LOSS 109-128

​

 

[Darkwebs]

2021 NBA PLAYOFFS BRACKET

​

 

[stampedehero]

Trail Blazers vs. Nuggets - Box Score - May 24, 2021 - ESPN<<<<<

 

[Labinot41]

I want blood for the rest of the series

 

[crandc]

They had their fun. No more.

 

[Mr. Robot]

game 2 was terry stotts basketball at its finest, keep playin like that and you wont stay in the playoffs for much longer

mike malone adjusted for the game 2 and i dont believe terry stotts will adjust for the game 3

instead, he will most likely run the same shit and hope we make our shots and denver misses theirs, that will probably be the game plan for the next game

 

[Fairly-Hard]

Time for the Home Cookin.

 

[BlazerBeav]

One thing is for sure - those scrub guards aren't going to be able to get away with all the crap they did last night with a Moda crowd screaming about it.

 

[Chris Craig]

I want blood for the rest of the series

I wish Nassir would have beat his ass. Not like he is going to play anyway

 

[PtldPlatypus]

Game 1 - 6 turnovers
Game 2 - 21 turnovers

That's the one thing I'll be looking at more than anything else.

 

[crandc]

You can't blame coach for all the times Portland passed the ball to Nuggets.

 

[James lamphear]

Yes some of you think we more talent but the talent level is not that far apart. The reason I said Denver in 6 is not the talent level is the way we play vs how they play. It's the how the teams are put together too. They have multiple players that create there own shot vs we got 3 players that create out there the rest of the players need to get someone else set them up for a shot. Defensely they don't have a rim protector but want they got players that can stay in front of there player and they make more difficult drive by them then they do our premeter defenders. We are not great on ball defenders period we got couple guys are decent off the ball defenders. But under Stotts our defense never was type a team that actually got after it and when we did get active the coach accuse a player going rogue. This is just as much olshey fault as it's Stotts he is the one that puts this team together but does gets players that fits in Stotts system maybe. Might be a good reason to go away from this coach. But hopefully I see more energy in front of actually home crowd. This might help Nurk out because he likes to play to the crowd.

 

[James lamphear]

You can't blame coach for all the times Portland passed the ball to Nuggets.

Some people in don't see that way though.

 

[UKRAINEFAN]

I want blood for the rest of the series

Hopefully that will motivate us.

 

[AldoTrapani]

Thank god Denver isn’t healthy

 

[Mr. Robot]

things like this really piss me off, just look at this horrible possession by dame

Spoiler: dame misses wide open nurk on the roll who can look to score or find wide open powell in the corner

Spoiler: dame chooses to play one on one against gordon and cant find a good look

Spoiler: dame passes the ball to nurk who takes contested 3-pointer

 

[BigGameDamian]

I want blood for the rest of the series

I actually kinda wish game 3 was in Denver now.

 

[wizenheimer]

it's early in the series. It's probably safe to say that the Blazers aren't as good against Denver as in game 1, or as bad against Denver as in game 2.

Dame has averaged 38 points and 11.5 assists; shooting 50% on three's, but only 33% on two's. There's little doubt (in my mind at least) his 2 point percentage is due to Denver being allowed to play more physical against him they they would be allowed against Curry, or Harden, or Booker or (pick your guard). We'll see if the Nuggets are allowed to grab, hold, and bump Lillard as much in the Moda as for the rest of the team:





Melo had a really hot 10 minutes; the other 32 minutes he's played he's kind of sucked. Kanter has been a disaster

Nurkic has played relatively well as long as you ignore his game 2 defense on Jokic. Simons has been limited in what he does, but within those limits he has performed extremely well. If he's still shooting 83% from three at the end of the series, Olshey will sign him to a 100M extension this summer

but 3/5 of the starting unit, CJ-Norm-RoCo, have played well below their talent. Portland won't win the series if those guys don't play much better than they have. Dame can't do it all, and Denver is certain to ratchet up their defense on him the rest of the way.

 

[Labinot41]

Stephen A with big facts about Nurk!!! Glad somebody of national Media said it, 2-8! while Jokic scores 38 on you? Are you kidding me bruh?. And btw it happens to way to often that this dude can't make the easiest shots, yeah he does have a big Impact defensively, but maybe the Blazers should look for another Center who has a Impact on defense and offense. I had to say it sorry

 

[Strenuus]

Stephen A with big facts about Nurk!!! Glad somebody of national Media said it, 2-8! while Jokic scores 38 on you? Are you kidding me bruh?. And btw it happens to way to often that this dude can't make the easiest shots, yeah he does have a big Impact defensively, but maybe the Blazers should look for another Center who has a Impact on defense and offense. I had to say it sorry

Posting Steven a Smith as some credible thing... nah.

It is true though that I've never seen a center miss so many layups in my life lmao.

 

[Mr. Robot]

i really dont undestand how people say stupid things so easily like its a fact

you cant say jokic scored 34 & 38 on nurkic, when thats clearly not the case, jokic scored 34 & 38 on the blazers, but he scored 16 & 13 on nurkic, 12/23 for total 29 pts on 52.2% efficiency

nurk won their matchup in the game 1, jokic won their matchup in the game 2, well see how the rest of the series goes, but as of now, if you consider that jokic is extremely good offensive player, top 10 player in the nba and most likely mvp, those stats look like nurk is doing really solid job on jokic... for gods sake, you cant shut down a player like jokic for the entire series, maybe you can do it for a game or two or three, like nurk did in game 1, but he will bust your ass too, but that being said, i would like to see hows nurk doing against rest of the nuggets team, but i dont know where to find it, so if someone could do it, id appreciate it

when it comes to offensive end, its the coaching thats the problem, not nurk, were not using him like we should, were not playing enough pnr, were not posting him up, were not giving him the ball at high post to make plays, were using him to set screens and thats the main thing hes doing... what the fuck people want from nurk, when the guy doesnt have possessions, when he doesnt have ball in his hands... its kinda difficult to make an impact on the offensive end, if youre not touching the ball enough

if you want more from nurk on the offensive end, then you need to use him more, use him as one of your main scorers and not as a role player

 

[Jon]

I want blood for the rest of the series

That appears to be deleted. What was it?

 

[Almir]

Overreacting in both win and loss, by the fans. When we won game 1, there was comments like we do not know how can we lose aganist them, its imposibile. Now after defeat there is no belief at all in the team no offense, no deffense, we are already out of the series...

Truth is somewhere in the middle IMO. We can and will win again and we will lose again in this series. Who will reach first 4 wins? we are tied now. They are dangerous they have mvp its not easy but we can. X factor can decide on both sides, hot shoting night by us, cold shooting night by them etc but please have belief in our team, they are capable to win this. And oponent is not Detroit, its Denver with MVP in their team. Through the history, all mvps torched their matchups, thats why they are mvps after all. It doesnt mean that deffenders are bad players, but those mvps are simply better.

I have belief. Somebody will win in game 7. I already wittnesed few years ago that Portland won. I will still believe in deja vu.

Go Blazers!

 

[Labinot41]

That appears to be deleted. What was it?

 

[noknobs]

Does anyone know how many people they're letting in for the game tomorrow?

 

[Jon]

LMAO. what a tool.

 

[Jon]

Does anyone know how many people they're letting in for the game tomorrow?

what game tomorrow?

 

[TBpup]

What I don't want to see is another example of Denver playing harder and with more urgency than the Blazers. They are down 2 of their top 4 scorers. We have the better players but they played like the better team in Game 2

 

[Mr. Robot]

denver was really aggressive from the get go of the game 2, it would be nice if portland would return them a favour from the get go of the game 3

 

[blazerkor]

Stephen A with big facts about Nurk!!! Glad somebody of national Media said it, 2-8! while Jokic scores 38 on you? Are you kidding me bruh?. And btw it happens to way to often that this dude can't make the easiest shots, yeah he does have a big Impact defensively, but maybe the Blazers should look for another Center who has a Impact on defense and offense. I had to say it sorry

If we're cool with Nurk's lack of mobility because he is a true big then there aren't any other fatal flaws with his game. The guy gets up and finishes with authority just fine when he wants to. So you don't have to go out and look for another C. You have to get a coach that will not put up with him finishing weak in the paint ever let alone most of the time, a coach that doesn't think the term accountability is outdated. You also need a coach that realizes how much better the guy is when he is engaged in facilitating the offense and doesn't go away from that a game after having great success with it.

In other words you don't give up on Nurk, you move on from Stotts.